Many of my quilting friends are not the stereotypical little old ladies, sitting in rocking chairs, piecing by hand with scraps from old dresses or flour sacks, but are parents of young kids, full time employees, volunteers for churches and charities, and quilters in their precious spare time. And some are men!

I don't know how many times I have heard my friends say, "I have all these tops in my closet, but I just can't quilt them on my machine...and I don't have time to quilt all of them by hand!" Wrestling the queen and king quilts and shoving them through the small 7" throat of the average sewing machine is difficult, even for the most experienced quilter (although it can give you a great upper-body workout!)

This is where I come in! With my Tin Lizzie 18 LS, I can turn your quilt tops into finished pieces!

My focus is helping amateur quilters to quickly finish their quilts for a reasonable price. I can provide batting and thread for you at sale prices, or you can provide it yourself (pending my approval). Due to its rugged workability, I work almost exclusively with the Warm Company battings. Other battings may be considered for use, such as thin cotton batts or 80/20 blends, but high loft poly batts do not work well in the machine.

I can do freehand designs--I specialize in swirls and meandering stipples--or I can use templates and pantographs. I can also do some specialty quilting to accent the quilt patterns.

I'm open for business and am ready for YOUR quilts!

Ye Merrie Quilter is a supporter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and will happily take your donations to fund research to improve the lives of those who suffer with CF. For more information about Cystic Fibrosis and the Foundation, visit www.cff.org.